After 15 seasons, Nneka Ogwumike has played her final WNBA game. On September 26, the Sparks lost 76-75 to the Valkyries, but the tears in Crypto.com Arena were for a different kind of ending.
ROOTS: Her name is Igbo for "Mother is Supreme." Her parents were both born in Nigeria and immigrated to the U.S., where she and her sisters were born. She played alongside her sister Chiney at Stanford, and it's a heritage she has always carried with pride.
THE RISE: The Sparks drafted her No. 1 overall in 2012. She won Rookie of the Year that year, and in 2016 she was named MVP and hit the title-winning shot in Game 5 with 3.1 seconds left. She finishes with eleven All-Star selections, eight All-WNBA selections and a spot on The W25, and she is the Sparks' all-time leader in scoring, field goals made, steals and double-doubles.
THE SETBACKS: Not every chapter was glory. She was left off the U.S. Olympic team in 2012, 2016 and 2021, making her the only MVP in WNBA history not to make an Olympic squad. Knee injuries added to the frustration. She responded by exploring a path to play for Nigeria instead.
THE FIGHT OF THE COURTS: As players' union president since 2016, she helped negotiate the largest salary increase in professional sports, with the cap growing roughly 367 percent, from $1.5 million to $7 million.
LIFE BEYOND THE SPOTLIGHT: Off the court, Nneka has kept her personal life largely private, letting her work and her voice speak for her.
WALKING AWAY ON HER TERMS: She retires while still performing at an elite level. "I've learned there's power in knowing when to walk away," she said. The story isn't quite over, though. She'll still play in Project B, the new global league debuting in January.
THE LEGACY: A championship, an MVP trophy, a record book, and a league that pays and protects its players better because she led the fight. Thank you, Nneka.